Cool Composites

French Aerospace company Messier-Dowty tapped into the expertise of structural engineering
professor Hyonny Kim this year to test the strength and durability of the first-ever composite
landing gear braces for the commercial aircraft industry.

It was the first time Jacobs School engineers performed tests on landing gear components for
the aerospace industry. Led by Hyonny Kim, a structural engineering professor at the Jacobs
School, the researchers performed six months of rigorous Federal Aviation Administration tests
on the landing gear braces, which were designed and built for Boeing's new 787 aircraft.

The purpose of the full-scale tests - which were performed at UCSD's unique Caltrans Seismic
Response Modification Device (SRMD) test facility - was to prove the strength and capability
of these major structural components. Kim said the recent partnership with Messier-Dowty will
help open the door for future aerospace projects for the SRMD facility, part of the Jacobs
School's Powell Structural Research Labs.